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Madelyn Ayers ’25 began her college journey at larger universities in Colorado and Virginia before transferring to ���ϸ�����, where she found the perfect fit. At ���ϸ�����, she discovered the support, encouragement, and opportunity she needed to excel. 

In December, Madelyn graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in psychology at the fall 2025 commencement ceremony. She was honored with the Outstanding Student Award for the School of Liberal Arts and Education and was selected to deliver the undergraduate commencement address.

“I feel grateful for ���ϸ�����,” Madelyn says. “The small school size allowed me to build relationships with my professors who offer one-on-one help and recognize my academic strengths."

A passion for studying and reforming the intersections between psychology and social justice drew Madelyn to ���ϸ�����’s psychology program and its hands-on approach to education.

“I have been interested in psychology since middle school, and I love that ���ϸ����� psych students complete directed research and field placements, as these classes contribute to a holistic education.”

Her first year at ���ϸ�����, Madelyn made the dean’s list both fall and spring semesters, joined the Honors Program, and was inducted into ���ϸ�����’s Psi Chi chapter. ���ϸ�����’s flexible curriculum allowed her to add two minors aligned with her major. The clinical and counseling science minor teaches skills needed to succeed as a psychotherapist, while the health humanities minor focuses on how to analyze health in the context of literature, ethics, and psychology.

Madelyn joined Dr. Ben Rosenberg's Health and Motivation Lab for the 2024-2025 school year. Working with in the lab led her to focus on research into trauma-informed care. In 2025, she presented her work at the Western Psychological Association’s conference in Los Vegas. Her senior thesis "Trauma-informed Care - A Catalyst for Strong Therapeutic Alliances" was nominated for the Psychology Department’s Dr. Bob Shukraft Award for Excellence. 

As a transfer student whose goal was to graduate a semester early, Madelyn particularly appreciated the guidance and support received from her faculty advisor, Dr. Veronica Fruiht, associate professor of psychology.

“Veronica has been very helpful and attentive as an advisor. She made a detailed graduation plan for me, and I appreciate the role advisors play in student success at ���ϸ�����.”

“I also took one of her classes my first semester. As a professor, she engages students during lectures, offers 1:1 help when asked, and quickly responds to questions and concerns. While she is a challenging professor, she has pushed me to learn more.”

Other professors who have made an impact are Dr. George Faithful, associate professor of religion and philosophy, and Dr. Christine Schaefer-Willis, adjunct professor of psychology. “Both are easy to reach outside of class to talk deeper about content,” Madelyn says. “They are also caring professors, and I felt pushed to become a better student and learn more.”

Troubled by both the income disparities and lack of racial diversity in the wider Marin community, Madelyn has embraced the opportunity to work with Marin’s diverse communities.  

Through the “Ethics and Housing and Homelessness” service-learning course, Madelyn spent the semester working with San Rafael’s Downtown Streets Team and its Streets Team Volunteers Program, which invites people experiencing homelessness to volunteer on teams dedicated to cleaning streets, parks, and other public spaces while they chart a path out of homelessness.

Madelyn worked alongside team members to clean the streets of San Rafael.

“I built relationships with individuals experiencing homelessness,” she recalls. “Likewise, I learned about various programs that Marin County and California offer to help combat homelessness.”

All psychology students are required to design and conduct their own research on a topic of their choice. Integrating this research topic with a field placement in the same content area gives students specialized knowledge of and first-hand experience in their own area of interest.

Madelyn worked as a mental health intern and youth mentor with the Youth Mental Health Academy. The academy is run by the Child Mind Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to working with children from structurally marginalized communities who struggle with mental health. Madelyn worked with students as they developed capstone projects examining specific topics in mental health. She continued to mentor nine students throughout the year, preparing them to transition into either higher education or the workplace.

“I am surprised and inspired by my mentees’ interests in mental health,” Madelyn says. “Each of them had unique, specific topics they wanted to research and learn more about. I wish there were more opportunities to learn about mental health and psychology in high school.”

Working with clinicians from the Child Mind Institute gave Madelyn insight into trauma-informed practices as she developed her senior research project. 

Madelyn is currently working as a full-time Kindergarten teaching assistant. Next, she plans to attend graduate school to study Counseling Psychology to continue working with children and adolescents in the counseling field. 

_{While attending ���ϸ�����, Madelyn was a recipient of the Jordan A. Fromm Memorial Scholarship.}